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Sourdough Workshop: Tools of the Trade

January 23, 2014

If you're a regular baker you probably have all this in your kitchen already. I'll admit though, I didn't. Here are tools to make it all so much easier.

1) A food scale - There's a good reason why most sourdough recipes use weight measurements instead of cups. If you use cups to measure your flour, the amount of flour in each cup can vary quite a bit depending on how compact the flour is. A scale allows for consistent results. You can find spring scales for cheap, but a digital scale is even better. I used a 12$ spring scale for more than a year before E gifted me with a digital one. I love the conversion from imperial to metric at the push of a button, and accuracy down to a gram.

2) A spatula - Helps keep that sticky sourdough starter off of your containers. It really does get everywhere.

3) A bench scraper - A10$ piece of kitchen equipment that will probably last forever. Sourdough dough can be extremely sticky, and leaves little dried bits on the counter that won't come off with a towel. The bench scraper does exactly that... scrapes off that mess. Bonus: You can also use it to cut your dough into portions, or pick up waste after chopping vegetables. OH let me sing your virtues...

4) A large mixing bowl - If you don't have one you need one STAT.

5) Tea towels, saran wrap, or big plastic bags - You don't want your dough drying out while its rising/fermenting or it will form a hard crust that will make it harder for the dough to rise.

6) Optional: A pizza stone - It keeps the temperature in the oven more consistent, and placing bread directly on that hot surface encourages it to rise.

Not so much right? Next... let's talk about starters and how to care for them.